The latest press release from the Federated/May Company mega merger holds exciting news for Hampton Roads residents. The announcement that local Hechts stores would soon carry the Macy’s name is fabulous news. I’m certain long term residents mourn the loss of another regional department store name. Hechts will soon join the ranks of the Leggett and Thalheimer chains, relegated to the abyss of time. But for those of us who lived long periods of our adult life in Macy’s markets, anticipating the arrival of that store is nothing but elating.
When our family moved from Atlanta to Hampton Roads there were three things that stood out as being very strange and different: the department stores; the physicians; and the nature and character of the residential neighborhoods. Search as I might, there just was no alternative to Macy’s. Thalheimer’s was the closest choice, but it was a far distant one. And it was not many years before that store name fell victim to an earlier merger.
Gradually time passed and I adjusted to my new environment. Shopping patterns changed. Memories of doctors offices with expensive decorator perfect waiting rooms faded. And neighborhoods with widely varying prices located near commercial areas started to feel like the norm. It took a corporate announcement in the business section of the newspaper to ignite a spark of memory. Welcome Macy’s! Your arrival is eagerly awaited.